Here are a few of George's thoughts:
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"I detest sloppy, especially to do with the sport of equestrian," said George, who went so far as to wipe off Carolyn Curcio's boots (and Nikko's) when they looked a little messy. Another note: He doesn't like pony tails, hair that sticks out from under a helmet or "long shaggy manes" on jumpers.
We had a treat later today, the Anatomy in Motion performance of Susan Harris and Peggy Brown. Peggy dressed up in a black suit painted with a skeleton, so you could see how all her parts meshed with those of a big gray Percheron cross, painted to show his muscles and bones on his exterior (the painting took four hours because the big animal was a lot of territory to cover, Susan said.)
When you see a human skeleton interacting with a horse's muscles and skeleton, you get a better idea of how things work and how you should sit in the saddle.
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- Horse and rider anatomy in motion
- © 2008 by Nancy Jaffer
Peggy made a lot of points about "protecting the back" so we can ride when we're 90, showing how roaching or arching the back can do permanent damage, as can pinching with your knees, rotating the knees and locking the hips.
Peggy suggested that keeping the heels down does not mean jamming the heels down, which will not allow the legs to work properly.
She gave us a neat exercise, changing diagonals in the "up" as opposed to sitting to change them, which most of us do. Doing it on the "up," which she practices before going in the show ring, gives information on "how well you're grounded."
Peggy amplified on a point George made about having "soft arms."
"Good hands are only as good as the arms they are attached to," said Peggy. She emphasized the importance of a bent elbow, explaining, "heavy elbows make light hands; they stabilize the hands."
Next, Dr. Katie Young, Purina's equine nutritionist, gave a one-on-one to each rider as they fed their horses, analyzing both the hay and grain. I learned that grass hay has little calcium, so it's necessary to get that from the feed, because lack of calcium can eventually lead to lameness. Oh, and she said it's a myth that wheat bran is a laxative. Thought you'd want to know.
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- Vet Danny Marks makes a point with another George Morris Horsemastership clinician Melanie Smith-Taylor.
- © 2008 by Nancy Jaffer
The afternoon wrapped up with Dr. Danny Marks, a longtime U.S. Equestrian Team veterinarian, who did an analysis of each rider's horse. Clinician Melanie Smith-Taylor was on hand for this, taking notes. As a 1984 Olympic show jumping gold medalist, she's well-acquainted with Danny but is always eager to learn.
Danny had so many conformation pointers that will serve the participants well when they go out to buy horses. I'll pass along just one: "You can get away with a long, low neck or a short high neck, but you can't get along with a short low neck" because the horse that owns it can't balance up enough to be a jumper. But Danny did note that it could probably be a hunter.
I can't wait to see what we're going to learn next, and I'll pass it right along to you.
Until tomorrow,
